Sunday, 18 November 2018

With my focus now on the 16 mm scale version of Nystrup Gravel I am currently going through my collection of 1:35 scale models and have decided to sell the items below: (Updated November 19 with models no longer available marked).

Loco No 1. Scratch built on a BullAnt drive unit. In running order. Prepared for DCC with room for decoder. Comes with interior and purpose built loco driver. € 170. See the loco here.

Loco No 3. Sala-loco from Log Cabin Works, Sweden. Fitted with decoder and in running order, but rather erratic. Comes complete with custom built driver figure and wooden storage box. € 140. See the loco being built here.

Loco No 8. Scratch built on a Faulhaber-equipped drive unit by Otto Schouwstra. Fitted with decoder and in running order. € 170.

Loco 23 pulling empty Scale Link skips.

Locos 22 and 23. Billard T75 resin kits from 13’eme Dragon fitted to BullAnt motor bogies. Fitted with decoders and in running order. Both locos fitted with driver figures. Preferably sold together in wooden storage box. Two locos in box: € 280. Single loco without box: € 170.See the locos being built here.

2 O&K MD2 etched kits from Hesketh Models (one open and one with cab). Kits unbuilt, in original boxes and with instructions. € 120 for each.

All locos and wagons are to 16.5 mm gauge and in running order (unless otherwise noticed). Prices are my suggestions. I’m open to suggestions and will give discount to buyers taking more than one lot. I will add shipping cost to the order. Payment by PayPal.

A list of road vehicles and construction equipment for sale will show up here before Christmas.

Friday, 16 November 2018

The Lister is progressing slowly. The kit's corner reinforcements glued in place with two component epoxy were too small and too thick according to prototype photos and drawings. I decided to tear them off and replaced them with homemade ones from plasticcard.

Short and stubby rather than low and long. The wheels are oversize by something like 2 mm and that doesn't help on the little Lister's appearance. Perhaps the large end ballast weights and buffers will help when they are fitted? The box for the driver is prototype no 2 from foam board.

As the assembly progresses it is clear to me that the model's measurements isn't exactly prototypically. While I have reduced the frame width to an acceptable degree of scale, the small bonnet is far too wide. With almost correct frame width the
bonnet's size now look massive compared to drawings in The Review. I was able to sand off a millimetre or two, but
it's still too wide. The front isn't moulded true to prototype, but as this is an experimental build I'm not taking the trouble of changing major kit parts. I assembled the bonnet and to increase the assembly's strength I added a
plasticcard bottom in the bonnet.

I have been experimenting with
the driver's seat arrangement. Originally I intended to fit the RC receiver there, but as my battery arrived I investigated if it would be possible to fit the battery in the box. A foam board prototype turned out far too high, so the battery will have to be fitted below the rear floor. A new, lower box was knocked up in
foam board. The prototype will help me pick the best size of the wooden box.

Wires were soldered to the engine and the engine itself glued into the U-shaped metal frame. After the glued had dried, I tested meshing and running. Everything worked fne and the running gear was put aside. I'm currently thinking out the sequence for the coming stages of the assembly.

I'm currently preparing a list of 1:35 scale models I will make available for sale. The list will be published here. Early inquiries can be made at nystrupgravel@gmail.com

Thursday, 1 November 2018

Well, it's only a heap of parts that will eventually become a 16 mm scale locomotive. And you could argue that it isn't even a loco, as it is a Lister Rail Truck, not a smart locomotive with cab and proper superstructure. The small Lister locos have been favorites of mine since I saw pictures of the type in the first British books about industrial railways I laid hands on as a teenanger. I never managed to model a Lister in 1:35. Now it's going to happen in 16 mm scale.

Parts for my Lister model. Delivered by I. P. Engineering. Workbench cleaned in advance of the new project. On your marks, ready, go!

The Lister loco was born out of the Lister auto truck, a small one wheeled motor unit designed to be coupled to a variety of trailer units. In 1928 the first Lister Rail Trucks left the Dursley Works factory to serve narrow gauge industrial railways with a need for an ultra light locomotive. Most trains on Nystrup Gravel's railway were too heavy for the Lister, but for light shunting duties at the gravel works in Nystrup and an occasional light permanent way train the loco was sufficient. I have never seen a picture of Nystrup Gravel's Lister, but old workers report it to be a mid-thirties model R. When the Lister arrived at Nystrup is not known, but it was most likely bought second hand after 1945. Searching for images of R-models I found Arnoud Bongaards' images on Flickr of the Lister in the collection of Decauville Smalspoor Museum in the Netherlands.

A preserved Lister type R from the Netherlands. I immediately became inspired to model this particular Lister with luxuriously driver's facilities as I can use the wooden box to hide my loco's RC equipment. Photo: Arnoud Bongaards.

A view showing the full package of extras for that unique comfortable driver's experience. The loco is Lister L873/1928 preserved by the Decauville Spoorweg Museum, Nederland. Photo: Arnoud Bongaards.

The I. P. Engineering's Lister is a simple kit. Casting quality is acceptable, but many details are rather soft. Some boltheads look more like rivets. On the other hand the kit isn't expensive and I think the balance between price and quality is pretty fine. It may also be unfair to expect the same level of detailing on a loco that is meant to live on a garden line to a loco that spends every day inside on a layout. The loco is powered by a very simple mechanism designed for battery power. It seems that other modellers have managed to build models that move from the parts so I'm optimistic. I will be fitting the model with battery power and RC equipment. Something that will no doubt stretch my abilities to the limit!To allow use on both 32 mm and 45 mm gauge (and to fit a standard AA battery) the kit is designed wider than Listers built for 600 mm gauge. As I use 32 mm gauge and will not be using AA batteries, I could narrow the frame by 7 mm to something a bit more prototypcal for a 600 mm. Lister. According to drawings in Narrow Gauge and Industrial Railway Modelling Review the frame's new width of 55 mm is still a few milimetres too wide, but with the supplied wheels the width can't be reduced further.

No sooner than a kit arrives, I start cutting bits off it! The kit's excessive width is reduced with a junior hacksaw. All other parts mounted across the frames are reduced in length too.

Current status on the Lister. Frames glued with AC and two component epoxy. I will be adding more parts in the coming weeks while I source parts for power and RC installations.

Once I get the model's running tested and the wiring designed, I will add extra parts to the kit. Most will probably be imitations of bolts and nuts. With my decision to abandon 1:35 scale I look forward to finishing my first locomotive in the new scale.

Tuesday, 30 October 2018

Having built models in 1:35 scale for more than 15 years, creating my little piece of a Danish 1950's gravel industry's narrow gauge railway, it's now time for a change. Not of theme, period or company, but of scale. In the coming years I will be building locomotives and rolling stock from Nystrup Gravel in 16 mm scale - 1:19,05. Currently I don't know if I'll build a small indoor layout or perhaps use a corner of the garden. Time will tell. What is important is that my motivation for the new scale is high. I'm looking forward to new challenges.﻿

One of the pleasures I have had in 1:35 scale has been the mix of different materials and cooperation with other modellers. The skips are from Hesketh & Snoodyk, the loco is 3D-printed fitted on a BullAnt with decals from a friend in Denmark and etched builder's plates from a German modeller. The bridge is completely built from scratch.

Nystrup Gravel No 2 is pulling an empty train to the pits while No 1 pauses outside the shed. It's easy to populate a layout in 1:35 with detailed figures. It's the painting that's hard!

Schöma-locomotive being transported on a heavy trailer. An absolute abundance of road vehicles are available as kits in 1:35 scale. I have had much fun building and rebuilding plastic and resin kist fitting the needs of Nystrup Gravel as well as other companies and individuals in the town.

I'd never thought I'd be leaving 1:35 scale, but despite my conservative modelling attitude, keeping to one scale and theme for many years, I felt I needed to move on to something new. Even if I'm holding on to the Nystrup Gravel universe, the choise hasn't been an easy one. I've grown very fond of my 1:35 models, but will now begin a process of disposing of them as keeping them in boxes in the loft isn't a viable option. I will gradually offer some of the models for sale either here or on some of the forums I'm a member of.
﻿

I have even had the joy of building several excavators for Nystrup Gravel. My Ruston & Bucyrus is a resin kit from Accurate Armour. As on all my models I added a few details.

The large Fowler was Nystrup Gravel's first diesel locomotive. I bought the 1:35 model from a modeller in Australia.

The joy of building modules is that one can bring them into the garden. Photograph them, enjoy them while barbequing or building on them outside as I have done a lot in recent years. Here is a Daniel Caso coach outside the shed one late evening.

1:35 has been a great scale for me and has brought me much enjoyment. I hope more modellers will discover the many possibilities the scale offers. It's a great scale for scratchbuilding, manufacturers are increasingly offering railway related products in the scale and regarding figures and road vehicles 1:35 is way ahead every of the other larger scales. Opportunities are almost endless.
﻿

The evening sun is setting as the last train of the day bring fresh gravel from one of the pits.

Should you have an interest in a particular model feel free to contact me with a proposal on price. You are welcome to mail me at the company e-mail nystrupgravel@gmail.com

Monday, 29 October 2018

On a Sunday where we had the first snow in Denmark this winter, I had several indoor maintenance projects. One involved some 1:1 interior painting and as I had the lid off the paint bucket and roller loaded with paint, I cleared my workbench completely and treated it to a new layer of white paint.

Workbench cleaned, painted and reequipped with tools and supplies. The snow melted away in a few hours. Next project on the bench is a 16 mm scale I. P. Engineering Lister-loco.

It is almost four years since the bench was painted last time. At that time we had just moved house and I was allowed to claim a larger area for modelling. Some will probably find my workspace cramped, but I like how on dark evenings, the darkness envelops me as I sit bent over a model in my little modelling cave.

As a consequence of my workbench clearing work I still have some indoor maintenance projects to do...

Tuesday, 16 October 2018

You may be excused if you think you have read this story before. In fact I have a Ferguson on the 1:35 scale Nystrup Gravel, and with the tractor being such a nice and classic piece of agricultural machinery, my new 16 mm scale version of Nystrup shouldn't be without one.

Right out of the box. I can't help thinking it is a fine model for the money spent.

My new Ferguson is a Schuco 1:18 model which I aqcuired from ebay, making quite a good deal for 36 €. Having seen the model go for prices as high as 160 € I'm considering it worth the trouble creating a ebay-account.

The model is a quite an accurate representation of a Ferguson TE20 with low mounted exhaust. All the parts are there, placed in the correct locations. The wheels turn and the hood can be tilted to expose a detailed engine, petrol tank, radiator and battery.

Right side view of the Ferguson. There is some detail painting to be done, particularly the exhaust pipe will need some attention.

Hood tilted to show petrol tank, engine and radiator.

This rear view shows some of the downsides of die cast and pre-assembled models: gaps I would have filled and sanded on any model I built myself are quite visible.

There is some work to be done on the model in the future. Primarily some painting and weathering and the fitting of the characteristic circular, green license plates. I look forward to the task ahead.

Monday, 8 October 2018

I have been slightly worried over the quality of figures available in 16 mm scale. With the excellent figures available in 1:35 scale I have been disappointed to find that in a larger scale, where the potential for detailing should be considerably better, most figures were looking deplorable. Last week my first 16 mm scale figure arrived in the mail.

I ordered a figure from Modelu of a young guy with cloth cap and waistcoat. Perhaps a little too 1930's to fit into Nystrup Gravel's 1950s. I liked the stance of him, though, looking slightly down and standing in repose. I want figures in relaxed poses that doesn't suggest them moving, which in contrast to the trains, they don't. Below the figure is nevertheless making a full turn.

The figure arrived safely packaged in a small cardboard box. Opening the box revealed the figure 9.2 cm in height and printed in a light grey plastic. The figure is completely devoid of the usual sign of 3D-printing: the narrow ripples from each of the thin layers of material deposited by the printer. There are a few places where a knife and file will be needed to remove a small dimple of plastic, but clean up will be minimal.

In comparison with the high quality resin cast figures in 1/35 scale the figure is a little disappointing. Facial detail is very soft and I predict a difficult painting task here. Detail around the shoulders and the boundary between waistcoat and shirt in that area is soft as well, leading to a weak demarcation between the two garments. The buckle on the lower rear part of the waistcoat is almost invisible. I will try some corrective surgery to sharpen the soft detail. Perhaps
the manufacturer can work on sharpening the detail on future figures?

As mentioned I like the natural stance of the figure. In real life the figure would correspond to a person 175 cm in height which is a tiny bit higher than the average Danish male at 18 years of age at conscription in 1951. Choise of clothing is excellent and the soft facial details aren't too noticable due to cloth cap and position of head. So despite the soft detail I think the figure is acceptable and it is certainly light years ahead of most other figures in 16 mm scale. I plan to aqcuire more figures from the manufacturer.

Sunday, 7 October 2018

After a long time, part spent working hard with preparations for the InnoTrans exhibition in Berlin, I am finally able to present my fourth finished 16 mm scale model. The I. P. Engineering kit of an early Ffestiniog brake van.

Smoke from steam engines have made the little brake van quite dirty. The staff in the work shop have welded together a short track panel. Nystrup Gravel's first 32 mm gauge track.

The model was built out of the box except for a minor reconstruction to allow body and chassis to be separated for maintenance and the adding of small details here and there. I added lamp brackets, bolts on the brake stand, door hinges and the large square bolt heads on both ends. I also rebuilt the buffers to be fitted with underslung coupling chains. The chains and hooks will be added later.

Cloth cover being glued on with diluted white glue.

Primed and ready for the cover paint.

After fixing the roofs and adding tissue paper as cloth cover, I primed the whole upper body with Chaos Black and airbrushed it with Vallejo Air 71036 'Mahogany'. I added the decals from the kit, but used only the FRC and number. The decals needed much work to fit snuggly into the grooves between the planks. I had to cut the decals along the grooves to assist the decal fluid in making the decals fit.

I then used a wire brush to remove paint from worn areas and followed up with acrylic and oil paint as well as chalk powder to add weathering.The mahogany paint is gloss so I had to give the completed model a final covering of matt varnish. The varnish also helps protect the weathering.

The mahogany paint is on and the roof is painted dark grey. I almost managed to avoid overspray, but you may notice a little grey in the upper right corner of the wagon.

In this image it seems like the work shop staff have wiped the lettering clean from dirt. In reality it is some kind of reaction between my decal solution, paint and varnish I haven't seen before. Every model teaches me something new.

Not being too familiar with the real brake vans I have nevertheless spotted some differences between drawings, different models and images of the original and the FR's new replica. Drawings of van 1 and 2 in Narrow Gauge and Industrial Modelling Review 38 and Steve Holland's build article of a Triassic Modelworks' kit in Review 78 helped during my build. Despite my doubts if the model is correct in every detail I think it is a good kit and will recommend it, not least because of its easy construction. Should I wish for one thing it would be the exchange of the wooden handrail on the brake platform with a metal part. I may fix that on my own model sometime in the future.

To add a splash of colour to this post's rather brown and dark grey impression, I have included two images from InnoTrans 2018. My part of the exhibition was concentrated mainly on relevant permanent way equipment and consequently a lot of my pictures are of yellow vehicles.

A Linsinger rail milling vehicle.

Two-way quad bike. A handy little thing for those small surveying tasks along the line.

Thursday, 4 October 2018

My new adventures in 16 mm scale provides me with lots of surprises. One of them is the size! I still have to get used to the size of the models as they are very large compared to 1:35 (which is itself considered a large scale). Recently I had the request to place a skip next to an object of known size for comparison. I went to the refrigerator, picked out a can of beer and placed it on the worktable next to a few models.

Hudson skip from Binnie Engineering, Ffestiniog wagon from I P Engineering (in progress) and figure from Modelu (just arrived) next to a can of beer.

The image provides an idea to everyone not accustomed to 16 mm scale, how large the models are. I predict I will have to keep a more tidy worktable to handle my future projects in 16 mm scale.

Friday, 7 September 2018

When I ordered the Chenard & Walcker van I also bought a 1:18 Renault Juvaquatre model 1951 station wagon. The station wagon was only introduced in 1950 a considerable time after the sedan Juvaquatre was launched in 1937! The model is made by French company Norev. As a metal diecast model it is quite heavy and makes a very sturdy impression. In this large scale diecast models can be made quite detailed and while small scale diecast models often have unrealistically soft details I don't think it is too obvious in 1:18. The car has interior detail, three opening doors and the bonnet opens too, revealing a detailed engine.

A French model of a French car: the Renault Juvaquatre station wagon.

The car has good ground clearance and with the ability to carry some extra cargo in the rear compartement I thought the car would fit in as the local veterinary's vehicle. Being located in a rural area a veterinary would have enough work to do in Nystrup.

Open driver's side front door showing interior detail.

As opposed to the Chenard & Walcker van the Renault has no French features to be removed to fit in around Nystrup. Only the license plate will have to be exchanged with Danish ones. A slight toning down of chrome parts, and a light weathering of underside and lower sides as well as a few bags in the cargo area and the car should be ready for service.

As part of my testing if 16 mm scale is a viable scale for me to work in I have ordered a figure. In my view figures are a weak point of the scale, and the majority of the figures in the scale would never make into my ownership. I'm looking forward to see the figure as it may be a deciding factor if 16 mm scale is going to be a future scale for me.

Wednesday, 5 September 2018

Nystrup Gravel bought brand new skips a few years
after the 2. World War. The old skips had taken a beating during the occupation when traffic on the little gravel line had been very heavy. The new Hudson skips came from Great Britain, in those years the primary supplier of
things mechanical to Denmark. After the war it was difficult for Danish businesses to get permission to import goods from abroad. Nystrup Gravel must have been lucky to be allowed to buy new skips.

Two new skips. Here seen in the state they had developed to after a few years of service.

The skips from Binnie Engineering are basically sound models with a potential for adding details. The edges of the skip bucket seemed rather wide to me, so I sanded them
down a bit and rounded off the corners. I shaved off the rivets on the end
edges and added a plastic card reinforcement strip. The rivets were
glued back on again with AC glue. It was exiting if I would be able to keep the loose rivets from disappearing and I managed to reuse all but two.

On the frames I added bolts to the brackets holding the axle boxes to
the frame and the grease bolt on the front of the axle boxes. I used bolts from TichyTrain. The
coupling horns are modified nails bent appropriately and with the
heads filed in shape.

I primed the skips with my usual black primer and decided to apply decals and weathering directly on the primer. The weathering was applied in several stages consisting of acryllic and oil paint, pastel chalk and graphite from a soft pencil.

Skips with decals and preliminary weathering applied.

The two Hudson-skips with buckets tipped. The holes drilled in the bottom of the body is barely visible. Any sensible skip owner drilled holes to allow rain water to seep out.

Friday, 24 August 2018

As part of my 16 mm scale testing programme I also bought an I P Engineering laser cut Ffestiniog early brake van. Totally irrelevant in a large scale 1:19 Nystrup Gravel scene, but a wagon with lots of character and charm. Perhaps it would even qualify as 'cute'. Having seen it at Boston Lodge on my recent visit to the Ffestiniog Railway, I couldn't help buying a kit. I shopped at I P Engineerings own website and found the packet on my door step a week and a half later.

The I P Engineering kit built, but still unpainted. Not my model, but an image from I P Engineering's website.

The majority of the parts are from laser cut wood. The wood is nicely cut and only minute tabs keep the parts attached to the surrounding fret. Metal wheels and brass bearings are included as well as a few white metal castings that make up detail parts like buffers, iron strapping and door handles. Decals are included in the kit.﻿

The complete kit laid out on the garden table.

The kit is designed for the frames including wheelsets to be permanently glued to the body. That is not a design that appeals to me. I like my models to have the running gear and the body as separate parts. In 1:35 scale that has helped when servicing the models, doing repairs or replacing broken parts. I assume that approach will also prove helpful in 16 mm scale. Very little work produced an easy to disassemble model.

Added wooden stop to enable the body to rest on the frames.

I made a hole for a bolt to enable the frames to be separated from the body. In the other end the buffer assembly keeps the frames firmly in place. Here the wheels' running surfaces have been masked off in preparation for priming.

Current status on the brake van. Size comparison with an in-progress Hudson skip.

About Nystrup Gravel

Nystrup Gravel is a 1:35 scale model of a Danish gravel company with a 600 mm. railway to carry gravel. Lines from several gravel pits converged outside the small town of Nystrup before reaching the company’s sorting facility and loading ramp for lorries.﻿﻿﻿

I model the company’s railway as it looked in the early fifties. I try to make up a believable setting for my railway models by researching the history of the company and its environments. This blog gives you the possibility to follow my work. Notice that Nystrup Gravel is ficton and that all history regarding the railway and company is my work and not real.